In the 1967 movie “The Graduate”, Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman) is given “one word” of advice for his future: “PLASTICS”.
Now … 56 years later … if you are in manufacturing, I am giving you TWO words of advice for your future: “BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE”
Business Intelligence ensures that a company has access to all the relevant information which its management needs to serve its market(s) as well as possible. It identifies all the elements of a company’s entire operations which need to be working cohesively to operate at its best. To be truly effective, all of a company’s operations need to work together: They all need to be optimized into a unified solution!
Robert Ziner is the founder and CEO of Advanced Bio-Material Technologies Corporation in Toronto, Canada: He believes that it is Business Intelligence that defines the need for AI4M; and a successful AI4M solution provides immediate, direct access to all of a company’s business intelligence, which is a key to continuous improvement. The market for AI4M in 2022 was $2.3B and is projected to grow to $16.3B by 2027, representing a CAGR of 47.9%over these 5 years: a 709% increase.
Historically, the driver of automation has been to focus on maximizing output, which has resulted in a narrow focus on producing more products. However, the emergence of, Artificial Intelligence for Manufacturing (“AI4M”), has shifted the emphasis towards the process of data optimization.
Rather than solely focusing on output, AI4M seeks to optimize the overall business operations and economics of manufacturing. By leveraging AI technologies, businesses can make more informed decisions, increase efficiency, and improve the quality of their products. Therefore, AI4M represents a paradigm shift from the traditional focus on maximizing output to a more holistic approach that takes into account the broader goals of the organization.
To best understand the future of Industry 4.0 and the adoption of AI4M, I believe it’s important to understand the pathway that technology has taken to make this shift.
Automation in Manufacturing: Maximization
Manufacturing operates in a very competitive business environment. Its basic focus is: How to produce more products – for less money! It is important to note the similarity between all the iterations of “automation” between 8000 BC and t943 (see diagram below) is the principle of Maximization; Manufacturing was traditionally focused on the idea that automation enables businesses to maximize productivity and revenues.
